A vision of the near future in the US: two thin coastal strips of liberal, progressive, pacifist democrats separated by millions of deluded fanatics who get all their news from social media and only speak in soundbites via Twitter, led by one of Trump’s children, who continues to peddle the lie invented by their father that there’s a giant conspiracy against them and they’re actually in the majority and need to seize power by force. In other words a Second Civil War. Or, as the Americans will call it, Civil War Two.
Meanwhile …
In the midst of a global pandemic with the UK recording its highest ever daily death toll from Covid, plus impending civil war in the US with the threat of a possible nuclear strike on God knows who, the lead story on BBC News – likewise Sky News – is that the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh have received their Covid vaccination. Cue archive footage of the Queen speaking to various unknown people or shaking their hands, while a voiceover repeats the fact that the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh have received their Covid vaccination. Then an interview with someone or other about the fact that the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh have received their Covid vaccination, followed by the voiceover repeating the fact that – did I mention this? – the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh have received their Covid vaccination. All this above a rolling ‘BREAKING NEWS’ banner stating that the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh have received their Covid vaccination.
Is it me or has 2021 got off to a bad start?
Robert Grossmith 